Monday, 23 January 2012

Mobile/Social Gaming Demographics Part 1

In this study by Flurry, it was found that mobile and social gamers tend to have a female bias, with 53% of players being female and 47% being male. This is in opposition to traditional (console, PC) gamers, which are predominantly male with a 60-40 split.

Furthermore to this it can be seen that most gamers of both types are between 18 and 49. However, the average age of social and traditional gamers differ greatly – with traditional being 34 and mobile/social being 28, a significantly younger demographic.

It is also worth noting that traditional gaming is equally popular with under 18s and over 50s, but social/mobile gaming is unpopular with the over 50s market. Does this mean there is a gap in the market for games aimed at the over 50s? Or are they merely not interested in the mobile platform as a whole.

This study is interesting, as it shows that mobile gaming in western culture is relatively popular, but almost non-existent in Asia. This goes against the popular image of the Asian market being gadget obsessed and a strong gamer culture. Perhaps traditional gaming has too strong a hold there for mobile gaming to gain a proper foothold?

This is a more in-depth look at mobile/social gaming by age and gender. It is worth noting that females across the age group remain consistently higher than male, with male gamers just edging female out between ages 13 and 25. This is a world-wide study, so takes into account the smaller Asian market.

This is an interesting study, looking at mobile gaming by household income. No real surprises to begin with – As household income increases, so does prevalence of mobile gaming. This is obvious, households with higher incomes can afford smart phones and ipads, whereas a household with lower income would have less access to these things.

Interestingly, after around 80k (USD) a year, the prevalence of mobile gaming drops off. This may be to do with the correlation between high income and age. I.e. richer citizens tend to be older.

Social gamers tend to be in, or have attained, a form of higher education.

In conclusion, a social/mobile game must be suitable for a female gamer, of above average intelligence, who is young to early middle age. Games must also be suitable for males however, and for younger audiences.